PersonaNocturne: Fool's Reason
by BloodBoredom
Summary: At the end of Persona 3 and leading into Nocturne, how will Minato Arisato act in the Vortex World?
1. Chapter 1

Fool's Reason

AN: I don't own SMT: Nocturne or Persona 3,Atlus does. Anyway I will update whenever possible, usually weekends.

_6:00 P.M._

_The tired bluenette could only make out some abstract shapes; the feeling of the world shaking was not unfamiliar to him, it reminded him of the ambulance ride in that fateful crash ten years back._

_Yes._

_Minato Arsato remembered clearly what had happened._

It was the day of the graduation at Gekkoukan High, the Wild Card felt tired, so _very _tired. Only Aigis seemed to have any memory of everything that had gone on. But that wasn't important; they both had a promise to keep. Thus, the bluenette made his way to the rooftop of the school that became Tartarus every night.

To Minato's surprise, the mechanical maiden was not the first to greet him after his long trek. In fact, the first one to burst through the door was the last person he expected to come running…

"It seems that you beat me to it, Minato-kun..." the heiress to the Kirijo name struggled to catch her breath.

"I take it you remember as well, then? Or... did you never forget to begin with?" a pained look enveloped her face.

"Our nights filled with battle... The miracle that happened..." the redhead closed her eyes and remembered the fond memories of their time at SEES.

"How you and I... felt about each other..." Mitsuru's face slowly flushed.

"I'm so angry at myself for not remembering earlier!" a tear escaped her usually cold, unexpressive demeanor.

"I lived without a care in the world for over a month..." regret seethed in her voice.

"All the while, ignoring the most precious person to me in the world!" she held the boy close to her, her breath bouncing off his skin.

"Can you... forgive me?" she allowed the tears to flow.

"... No, You don't have to answer that... I have no intention of letting go." she gave him a small smirk.

"We'll have to build our love from scratch again..." Mitsuru looked the bluenette in the eye.

_The rustling sound in the distance could only be their friends, a little later than planned._

"Can you hear that? Everyone else is worried about you, too" both gave each other brief, but meaningful smiled of approval.

_The sun's rays gave a radiant shine to her and the boy in her arms._

_Minato's eyes grew heavier with each passing moment._

_The bluenette fought his instincts to keep the girl in focus._

"Come what may... We'll be together." the Kirijo heiress whispered lovingly to the boy's ears.

That was the boy's last clear memory before the sound of blaring sirens filled his restless mind.

"Why aren't we going to the hospital Chidori is in?" Junpei Iori scratched his head as he tumbled when the ambulance hit a bump in the road.

"It's loaded with people recovering from Apathy Syndrome," Fuuka Yamagishi informed her teammate.

"_He _wouldn't appreciate us knocking someone off the place to stick him in there," Yukari Takeba added.

"Besides, the facility in Shinjuku is quite vacant," Mitsuru glanced away from the group to hide her sadness.

"I am certain that this isn't how it should be," Aigis retorted as she hid her face from view, pain overcoming her voice.

"Aigis!" Akihiko Sanada growled low, shocking Junpei and Fuuka.

"This…This isn't enough to keep him down," the boxer continued.

"Sanada-san, _he _doesn't need this right now…Shinjiro-senpai would agree with me here," Ken Amada brooded with a whimpering Koromaru in his hands.

"Ungh…" the bluenette gave a zombie-like groan.

_The members of SEES stared at their leader and stopped their in-fighting for his sake._

_Later at Shinjuku Medical Center…_

"What do you mean you can't keep them out?" a man rubbed his temple.

"Bu-but Hikawa-san…" the underling stuttered over the phone.

"Kirijo? Since the split with the Nanjo-group, they've been a painful nuisance in our plans." the man known as Hikawa sighed.

"What should we do sir?" the underling asked his commander.

"I will deal with them in the Vortex World," a sudden seriousness consumed Hikawa's voice.

"Godspeed sir!" the loyal underling cut off the radio communication with the man.

The members from Gaea who followed him to form the Assembly of Nihilo were quite loyal, if not zealous in their new goal.

"Shijima will come into fruition very soon," Hikawa took a bottle of whiskey and toasted to what was to come.

_At an unknown location…_

"An interesting new pawn has come to this chessboard of ours," a little boy with blonde hair and blue eyes smiled towards a shapely woman in black.

_End Chapter 1._


	2. Chapter 2

Fool's Reason

AN: I don't own SMT: Nocturne or Persona 3,Atlus does. Anyway I will update whenever possible, usually weekends.

_7:00 PM_

_The ambulance came to a smooth halt in front of the hospital's ER, paramedics quickly rushed to the incoming patient who slept peacefully despite the sadness of the atmosphere._

"God, please this can't be how it ends! We've fought so hard for this!" Yukari Takeba's eyes were flooded with tears.

"Yuka-tan, that guy is one of the toughest people I know, and Mitsuru-senpai still has a lot to say yo him," Junpei Iori said in a sagely voice.

Yukari Takeba never felt as foolish as she did that moment, whatever happened between her and Minato while precious, couldn't compare to how much the bluenette regarded the redheaded heiress.

"..." Mitsuru gave a cold glance of acknowledgement to the group.

"Senpai..." Fuuka Yamagishi looked at her friend.

"Mitsuru, he's gonna be fine, he'll get through this somehow," Akihiko Sanada put a supportive hand on the woman's shoulder.

"*woof*" Koromaru barked in Ken's arms.

"Koro-chan is praying for Minato's recovery," Aigis translated for the pooch.

"*chuckle* So we have a praying dog on our side now, huh?" the Kirijo heiress allowed herself a short reprieve.

"Excuse me kids," a doctor motioned for the group, "we're running some blood-work, but his vitals are stable at the moment so he's being moved to a room."

_8:00 PM_

_An awkward silence filled the hospital room, interrupted only by beeping machinery._

"You guys should go have some dinner, I wanna be alone with _him _for a while," Mitsuru broke the tension in their minds.

"Oh, okay," Yukari stood up, grabbed Aigis's hand and made her way to the door.

"But, I am a machine, I have no need for foo-" the mechanical maiden was cut off by a slamming door.

"Haha, I'll get going too, you take care Mitsuru," the silverette grabbed his jacket and followed after the girls.

"Let's go Ken," Junpei put on his hat and left with the boy, the dog still in the lad's arms.

_8:10 PM_

_Weary eyes looked over the sleeping body of Minato Arisato, so peaceful was his slumber, free of unnecessary movements and noise that Mitsuru began thinking of how everything was a cruel foreshadowing._

"Please, don't leave me, I've already lost so much and I don't want to lose you too," the redhead held a fierce grip on the boy's hand.

"..." the bluenette gave no response.

"Huh?" a sudden urge to sleep quickly took over Mitsuru's thoughts.

_Thump._

The woman took to a sudden slumber as her head succumbed to the beckoning of the bluenette's pillow.

_Creek._

The door to the room was slowly opened and a well dressed man with blonde hair and mismatched eyes, one of red and another blue, entered, bringing with him a woman in black.

"Pfft. The youth these days sure have a lot of drama in their minds, don't they?" the strange man mused to his companion.

The woman smiled in amusement.

"With this, he might just wake up," the blonde man took a strange creature from his pocket.

The woman in black nodded in approval.

"To the new world young man, may your choices be true and your desires fulfilled," the stranger made a mock toast and dropped the tiny insect on the bluenette's uncovered eye.

_8:30 PM_

_The four teens, the boy, the android and the dog were walking to the hospital from the nearby strip mall with more on their mind than the distinct "flavor" of that evening's meal._

"I don't really have the appetite tonight guys," Junpei groaned to the others.

"Well, I don't blame you, this...this is just messed up," Akihiko scratched his head.

"I'd always thought that if we died, Nyx would be the one in front of us, not like this," the pink-clad brunette tightened her hand into a fist.

"Takeba-senpai! He's not gone yet!" Ken yelled out.

"I know, but now, him sleeping more often and this, it just connects itself, y'know?" Yukari was visibly disturbed by what she had said.

"Please Yukari-san, we have not come this far for it to end like this," Aigis protested.

"Aigis is right guys, come what may, we can't give up on the world we fought so hard for," Ken added maturely.

The group agreed with the boy's resolve, and silently made their way to the friend who needed them the most.

_8:40 PM_

_Mitsuru Kirijo was bothered by violent shaking, as she came to, she realized that the boy who gave her meaning was struggling for his life._

"Minato-kun!" the redhead panicked.

"Guahh!" the bluenette's eyes shot open, the boy writhing in pain.

"Wait, I'll get a nurse," the heiress made a dash for the door before the Minato's voice spoke out.

"Mi-Mitsuru..." the boy gasped for air, "let's survive."

_A brilliant light was slowly enveloping the horizon, until the light covered all they could see._

_End Chapter 2_


	3. Chapter 3

Fool's Reason

AN: I don't own SMT: Nocturne or Persona 3,Atlus does. Anyway I will update whenever possible, usually weekends.

_Time does not flow in the Vortex World..._

_Shinjuku Medical Center..._

Today was not a good day for Minato Arisato and he knew it, thought about it and was now grumbling about it.

"My life is a goddamned mess," the bluenette cursed as he lifted himself up and cleaned out the debris that covered his frame.

At that moment, Minato noticed a few strange things in that moment. First, Mitsuru was on the other end of the room, breathing, but unconscious. Second, the area surrounding the hospital was deserted of people and cars. Third and most importantly, the boy was shirtless and covered in strange tattoos along with a large spike protruding from his neck. At least his MP3 player was still intact and fully charged, Mitsuru's doing probably.

"The fu-Mitsuru," the youth rushed to the girl's side as she groaned.

"Oh God, what happened?" the redhead rubbed her head as she propped herself into a sitting position.

"Dunno, haven't seen the others or any other people for that matter," the bluenette replied, helping the girl stand and checking her for any bruises.

"I'm fine, but we should check on the others," the girl spoke thoughtfully.

_Shinjuku Medical Center hallway..._

The pair looked around the hallway and both spotted no signs of life which added to the ominous feeling they had.

"Not even a single nurse or doctor," Minato started searching the rooms.

"Hey, there's a floating box over here," Mitsuru said inquisitively as she touched the box.

*Mitsuru found 2 Chakra Drops!*

"These are..." the redhead tried to piece the information together.

"Not good, I don't like the looks of this," the boy spoke, rubbing his chin, realizing that his nails had sharpened.

"We have to get out of here!" the redhead sounded distraught.

The bluenette nodded in approval.

_Meanwhile..._

"Systems operating at 86% functionality," Aigis stared blankly into space as she ran her diagnostics.

Looking at the room around her, Aigis saw the silhouette of Fuuka being dragged out by an unknown figure.

"Cease and desist!" the mechanical maiden attempted to stand, but stopped as she heard a low growling sound from behind.

"Aigis watch out!" a familiar voice yelled as it neared the source of the growling.

"Akihiko-senpai," the blonde redirected her sight to the strange creature that had planned to attack her.

"I dunno what's happening, but I don't like it one bit," the silverette said as he punched the weird creature in the face.

"YoU, Y-yOu, gIvE me mAguTsuhI!" the strange purple monster cried out before its life was extinguished.

"That thing was like a Shadow." Aigis reported.

"What do you mean Aigis?" Akihiko's face tightened.

"Though it could speak and had a more pronounced form, that creature is fundamentally the same as the Shadows we fought," the blonde answered as she scanned the area for more.

"So they're like evolved Shadows? Our dark desires given form," the boxer fled into deep thought, "tell me Aigis, was everything for nothing if something like this could happen?"

"..." the mechanical maiden closed her eyes, "Yes, if something like this happened then perhaps no amount of effort on our part could change that, but if people wished to change then that is their choice, the choice we fought for them to have."

"I suppose you're right, man, Shinji is probably laughing at me now," Akihiko strained into a smile.

The two were about to move about until they heard frantic running nearby.

"Aigis," the silverette motioned for the girl to prepare.

"Right," the blonde replied as she armed herself.

The sound grew louder and louder as its source neared the doorway, Akihiko and Aigis held their ground and kept focused on the door.

"Woah, its' me, it's Junpei," the new arrival said as he stood pointblank of Aigis' loaded finger launchers.

"Hey Junpei, have you seen the others?" the silverette asked.

"No, I tried to look for a way out, but there was this weird devilfish blocking the way," the man with a hat shrugged as he raised a metal pipe.

"You're armed, you must have seen _ them_," the blonde deduced.

"If I didn't know better, those things were demons," Junpei gasped for breath.

"Fuuka!" Aigis stiffened.

"What happened?" the silverette jumped back in surprise.

"A strange figure carried her out, I confirmed that he was 93% human based on his frame," the mechanical maiden described.

"Besides us? I think we can get answers out of that guy," the baseball fan swung his metal pipe like a sword.

"Easy now, without the Dark Hour, we don't have our Personas," Akihiko tried to explain.

"I still detect Persona-like resonances within each of us, though the wavelengths are slightly off," Aigis countered.

"Sweet, though without Evokers, only Ai-chan could fight effectively," Junpei grinned, "would have been nice if I could just go 'Burn!'" the man with the hat said mockingly with his palm outstretched.

"Like that would ever ha-" Akihiko stared in disbelief.

A giant fireball escaped from Junpei Iori's palm and blasted through the wall.

"Let's get moving," Aigis led the group out of the room.

_Back to Minato and Mitsuru..._

"Yamagishi!" the redhead cried out as she saw Fuuka being carried out by a stranger.

"After her," the bluenette ordered and the pair zoomed towards their tactical support.

The duo followed the strange man to what seemed to be the exit of the hospital, but were stopped when the gate closed.

"Trying to get out huh?" a voice popped out of nowhere.

"Huh?" Mitsuru looked in the direction of the voice and saw a redheaded fairy.

"I'm Pixie by the way and if you want to get out I'll be willing to help you," the strange fairy offered the two a deal.

"I guess it won't hurt to have an extra pair of hands," Minato looked towards Mitsuru.

"You're right, we'd be happy for you to join us," the redheaded woman responded to the offer.

"Yay!" was the Pixie's reply.

_Outside Shinjuku Medical Center..._

A strange stillness could be felt, the wind did not move and neither did the sand that now encompassed the whole city. A lone figure walked the streets in confusion.

"Ken! Stupei! Akihiko-senpai! Aigis! Koro-chan! Where are you guys?" a pink-clad brunette shouted in vain.

"So this is Japan huh? Doesn't look like I can find any sughi here." a silverette in red spoke loudly, ignoring the nearby brunette.

"Who're you?" Yukari asked the man, paying caution to the large sword on his back.

"Just some guy on a job," the man replied, "the name's Dante."

"I'm Yukari Takeba and do you know where we are," the girl looked expectantly and awaited an answer.

"Nope, but stick around and maybe we'll find out," Dante said as he began walking.

_"What am I doing? This guy might kill me, but he's my best bet of finding the others." _Yukari thought.

The two began wandering passed the motionless desert.

_Inside the hospital..._

The trio of Minato, Mitsuru and Pixie had just finished off a group of Preta demons to get the gate pass needed to unlock the gate that Fuuka and the strange man had passed earlier,

"I would be more comfortable if I had a real sword you know," Mitsuru spoke as she held her improvised IV stand of a sword which Minato was kind enough to sharpen with his claws.

"Evokers would be nice too," the bluenette joined in on the complaints of the heiress.

"What're you two lovebirds talking about behind this Pixie's back with this Evoker thingie," their companion gave them a devilish grin.

Mitsuru looked away as her face flushed while Minato just stood with an iron hard look on his face.

"It's none of your business," the redheaded woman shot back.

"We are working together here," the redheaded fairy countered, "a good team needs trust y'know."

"It's a way for us to use our powers," the bluenette answered.

"But you two are pretty powerful as is," the Pixie threw a confused look.

In response the young couple threw each other confused looks.

"Let me try something," Mitsuru aimed her palm at a nearby wall, "Bufudyne!"

To the heiress' and Pixie's shock a prison of ice engulfed the wall and shattered.

"Woah! Bufudyne! You are powerful!" the redheaded Fairy's eyes shone in awe.

"..." the bluenette stared at his companion, green with envy.

"You lost your powers," the heiress understood and said with a heavy face.

"Looks like our love isn't the only thing I have to build from scratch, huh?" Minato lightened the mood.

"Love? So what have you two been doing before I met you," Pixie laughed devilishly.

"Dying." the boy said flatly.

"This is a hospital, the two of us couldn't be doing _that _in this place," Mitsuru's face flushed an even redder color.

"You two are no fun," Pixie pouted.

"Woah, devilfish!" Minato stood with mouth agape at the large creature seemingly swimming behind the glass.

"That's Forneus and we're gonna have to get pass him to move on," the redheaded fairy said reluctantly.

_The Assembly of Nihilo..._

The stranger stood still with the unconscious form of Fuuka Yamagishi.

"Yuko Takao may have fallen in the Conception, but somehow, fate saw fit to send me another maiden for Shijima," the man said.

"Ugh," the green haired girl groaned.

"Looks like you're coming to...My name is Hikawa and you have the opportunity to make my reason a reality," the man gave a cruel smile.

_End_

AN:

What the heck happened to Ken and Koromaru? Tune in tomorrow.

Reviews are welcome along with questions as to the directions of the plot.


	4. Chapter 4

Fool's Reason

AN: I don't own SMT: Nocturne or Persona 3,Atlus does. Anyway I will update whenever possible, usually weekends.

_Sorry I couldn't make the Sunday update last week, stuff had to be done that reared its ugly head. Anyway, Ken and Koromaru are gonna make their Vortex World debut here, but you will be surprised. SEES' people somehow using their Persona powers are gonna receive a massive nerf too. And to the thought crossing everyone's minds, Yukari is hanging around Dante AND she will be awesome._

_End AN._

*Story Starts here*

_Time does not flow in the Vortex World..._

_Mitsuru panted as the devilfish-like creature swallowed her Bufudyne happily before resuming its attack. Forneus had been pushed back by Minato and the Pixie beforehand, but the unfortunate act of healing it with Ice attacks brought back most of its strength._

"Gah, it absorbed the Bufudyne!" the floating redheaded fairy backed away in surprise.

"Hahaha," their opponent began laughing, "after bringing me back to full strength, you think you stand a chance?"

"Damn, if only we had known beforehand," Mitsuru bit her lip.

"Don't let up," Minato encouraged before lunging at Forneus and delivering a crushing elbow strike.

"Hmph," the devilfish scoffed before blasting the bluenette with a large block of ice.

"Gah," the boy writhed.

"Minato!" the redheaded woman gasped.

_At that moment, Mitsuru felt something welling up from within, a power she hadn't used since Penthesilea was her Persona._

"Analyze." the Kirijo heiress spoke calmly as information flooded her eyes, "it's weak to electricity, if only Akihiko and Ken were here."

"Electricity?" the Pixie's eyes gazed in wonder, "I can do that."

_The petite redhead fired what both Minato and Mitsuru recognized as the first of the electric spells, Zio._

"Now is the time for an All Out Attack!" Mitsuru ordered with renewed vigor as she held her sword.

"Right!" the bluenette nodded and proceeded to lead the charge.

"Woah," Pixie was shocked at the lack of effort on the humans' part to dish out extreme violence and managed to wince as every blow connected with the opposing demon.

"Little help here," Minato said sarcastically.

"Wah, sorry!" the petite redhead apologized before launching streams of lightning from her hands until her mana had drained out.

_With great effort, the devilfish Forneus was felled. The group had just experienced their first real fight in the Vortex World and were the ones who were wore for wear._

"Huh?" the bluenette noticed something crawling around the creature's corpse.

"Is that a centipede?" the boy's redheaded companion asked.

"Whoa, a Magatama!" the Pixie stared at the small insect with wonder.

"What?" Minato answered in his signature deadpan with a question of his own.

"Where did you people come from?" the floating demoness countered in frustration, "it's like the thing that gave you your powers."

_As if in reflex, the bluenette ingested the insect before spitting out another similar creature. The markings on his body began to flicker, changing color to a deep blue._

"Akh..." the boy yelped at the sudden change.

"Are you alright?" Mitsuru expressed her concern.

_The boy held his face in one hand and stretched his arm out towards the wall in an effort to support himself._

"I'm on it," the Pixie said as she neared the boy and began healing him with magic.

"Ahh," the bluenette sighed in relief as the healing spell made its distinctive sound.

"Huh?" the redheaded woman focused her gaze on the sudden glow of blue building up around Minato's hand.

_A shard of ice quickly engulfed the small box that the bluenette's arm rested on._

"..." the boy was in deep thought.

"So the Magatama grant you different abilities?" Mitsuru's mind wandered off.

"Quit wasting time, this place is getting scarier by the minute!" the Pixie complained.

_"If the Magatama grant abilities, why not me?" Mitsuru began thinking, "no the correct question would be who and why would they give it to 'him'."_

_The bluenette understood what his better half was thinking and wondered about it himself. However, time was against them and so the question would have to be answered another time as the team left the hospital and began walking towards Yoyogi Park._

_Meanwhile..._

_A short distance from the hospital..._

_The sound of violence echoed throughout the area of the timeless desert._

"Haa!" the silverette let out a loud kiai as his fist made contact with the avian in his path.

"I got this!" Junpei said ecstatically, "Burn!"

_Fire erupted from the boy's hand and quickly consumed the enemies._

"Aigis!" Akihiko ordered the blonde.

"Understood!" the girl replied in her monotone.

_Without access to ammunition, the mechanical maiden had to improvise with a makeshift ax. Said ax was large and cumbersome for most humans to wield, thankfully the girl was not quite human and wielded the ax to the same effect as the late Shinjiro. Aigis quickly lifted the weapon over her head and swung it down with enough force to make a clean cut at the center of the bird-like foe._

"Nice one Ai-chan!" the boy with the hat cheered.

"That takes care of that," the silverette reported with a quick glance of the landscape for good measure.

"Yamagishi was carried off in that direction," Aigis pointed towards what should have been South in the regular world.

"What're we waiting for?" Junpei made a sudden dash.

"Wait up you idiot, you'll get us killed!" Akihiko berated the boy with the hat.

"Fuuka..." the blonde whispered to herself, "please be safe."

_The quirky trio disappeared into the horizon._

_At a nearby town where strong demons resided..._

_A girl in pink stood very closely to a man in red. The two of them were passing by the town, the man in red, Dante, said he had business with someone on the top of a nearby tower._

"What's with this place?" the brunette asked, "It's like everything is trying to kill you here!"

"This is the demons' world ya know," the man in red answered, "and these guys are 'survival of the fittest' types."

"If that's true then they must have..." Yukari could only mouth the other words in horror, "...the other people."

"Nah, humanity bit the dust before these guys popped up," Dante said reassuringly, at least as reassuring as implying human extinction could get.

"Okaaay," the girl said disturbed, "who're you meeting up the tower anyway?"

"Dunno," the man shrugged, "but with the Dawinist ideas here, logically speaking, the leader/strongest guy around, should be staying at the top."

"That makes sense," the brunette agreed.

"Hey!" a large demon wielding a naginata called out, "Who do you humans think you are? You can't just walk into Mantra HQ that easily."

_The demon held its weapon in a combat stance._

"Tch," Dante let out, "get lost!"

_The demon was irritated by the man's smug attitude and rushed him with his weapon running through Dante's chest.  
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"Dante!" Yukari cried out, the sight of blood too much for her.

"Quit your whining!" the man in red ordered.

"What!" the oni stood with his mouth agape in disbelief.

"By the way," Dante spoke as he pulled the naginata out of his chest, "try to aim a little higher next time."

"You...What the hell are you!" the demon drew the naginata and switched to a defensive stance.

"A little pissed off," the man in red gave a small smirk before he drew two pistols from his jacket.

"Guns?" Yukari stood surprised.

"Jackpot!" the silverette said as he proceeded to fire a hail of bullets at the oni in point blank range.

"Gahh!" the red demon screamed before dying.

"How did you survive that?" the brunette asked the man.

"..." Dante said nothing, "hmph"

_The man just continued walking towards the skyscraper._

"Hey, wait up!" the brunette ran to catch up to Dante.

_Inside__ the demons' headquarters..._

_A large humanoid in golden armor halted the advance of the man in red._

"Who dares walk into Mantra territory?" the man in gold demanded an answer.

"Hey..." Yukari squinted at the presence of the giant, "...he looks familiar."

_Dante said nothing, instead he held out something from his hand._

"A, a candelabra!" the man in gold stuttered.

"A what?" the brunette grew more confused at the way this world functioned.

"Very, well, I, Thor, allow you to pass," the giant said.

_The two went passed the larger man and proceeded to traverse the Mantra headquarters._

"What is that candelabra thing anyway?" the girl could not hold her curiosity.

"Dunno," Dante replied with an honest tone.

"What?" the pink-clad girl said flatly.

"The guy who hired me for this job just handed it out," the man in red explained.

_"Job? Wait. Someone was expecting this to happen?" the brunette thought to herself._

_Elsewhere..._

_A boy and a dog were fighting off a horde of demons, an adult man seemingly commanding them._

"What're you planning to do with Yamagishi-senpai?" the boy shot out.

"Grrr..." the white dog growled in the man's direction.

"Oh please, I know all about the game Kirijo had you all playing," the man laughed.

"What?" the boy backed off, "Who are you?"

"So many questions," the man fixed his suit, "but no time to answer, kill them!"

_More demons popped out and surrounded the pair as the man exited the room._

"Let's do this Koromaru!" the boy held his spear up high and charged into the crowd.

"Awoo!" Koromaru cried out and joined his companion.

_It was a glorious battle..._

AN: So, that's the second chapter of the story. It's looking to be around 30 if I follow my plans.

In the story, Hikawa (dude who kidnapped Fuuka) was aware of Mitsuru's grandpa's experiments with the Shadows and it will serve to explain something that bridges the gap between Persona and the main SMT series.

Akihiko's group does what should realistically happen in an RPG with dungeons...blow the walls to bits! (courtesy of Junpei and Aigis).

Yukari was able to leave the hospital by jumping out a window then using her Garu(Zan in Nocturne) skills to break her fall(don't worry, she tested her powers before jumping) AND then she ran into Dante.

Ken and Koromaru are the smallest members of SEES so they were able to slip past Forneus and have a head start above Akihiko's team in chasing Hikawa.


	5. Chapter 5

Fool's Reason

AN: I don't own SMT: Nocturne or Persona 3, Atlus does. Anyway I will update whenever possible, usually weekends.

_This week's update is late due to exams in Health Care..._

_End AN._

*Story Starts here*

_Time does not flow in the Vortex World..._

_At Yoyogi Park..._

_Minato was listening to his MP3 which to his good fortune, was fully charged with the charger in the bluenette's pocket. Mitsuru was surveying the area to make sense of the situation. The Pixie flew slowly, but eventually decided to overtake her human companions._

"Well, thanks for helping me get here," the fairy said hesitantly.

"No, thank you for helping us out back in the hospital," Mitsuru smiled at the tiny redhead.

"Yeah," Minato agreed with his girlfriend's reply.

"So this, this is where we part ways huh?" the Pixie's face contorting to a frown.

"We need you," the bluenette hesitated, somehow remembering the tricky process of progressing his Social Links for Igor and Elizabeth.

"Huh?" the fairy was pleasantly surprised.

"We weren't even from this area so we're not familiar with the landscape from before 'this' and you're the only demon who hasn't tried to kill us," the redhead explained.

"Okay, it is more fun than staying out here," the Pixie agreed, "wait, I just remembered something!"

"What?" Minato said as he moved his head to the rhythm of his songs.

"We can't travel after the beating from Forneus," the redheaded fairy scolded the teens.

"Not much we can do about that," Mitsuru groaned as she inspected her partially torn outfit.

"But that's what I just remembered, there's a Fountain of Life around here," the Pixie explained.

"Fountain of Life?" the Kirijo heiress was unsure of what the fairy spoke of.

"Remember the Macca we got from the fights?" the redheaded fairy intoned like a school teacher to children.

_Minato and Mitsuru nodded politlely._

"In exchange for that, the fountain heals our wounds!" the Pixie exclaimed in glee.

"We could have used that in Tartarus," the bluenette reminisced.

"It would have been a great deal of help huh?" Mitsuru supressed a chuckle.

"Let's go!" the fairy zoomed passed the two at her full speed.

_Within the room of the Fountain of Life..._

_In the center of the room, a thinly-veiled woman, possibly undressed under the veil, sat in a meditative stance._

"200 Macca..." the eerie occupant of the room said coldly.

"..." the boy stared at the spirit and recalled his meetings in the Velvet Room. Amusingly, Minato imagined that the spirit was merely Elizabeth in disguise and the boy gave a wide grin.

"Ahem," the boy's companion coughed into her closed fist and the boy could swear that he saw a vein popping in his significant other's forehead.

"Huh?" the bluenette gave a confused look at the girl.

"Enjoying the show?" the redhead's voice seethed with venomous fury.

"Wait, what?" Minato's confusion grew until he began to understand what it was his girlfriend thought he was doing, "It wasn't like that, I wasn't staring at her-"

_The bluenette's explanation was cut off by the sound of ice shattering around him._

"Bufudyne," Mitsuru whispered as she attempted to conceal her rage.

"Agh," the boy tried to move, but the strength of the third level ice magic was too great to bear without appropriate Persona.

"Executed," the redhead stood over her partner's now prone body.

"500 Macca..." the fountain spirit spoke suddenly.

"Huh?" the Pixie wondered as she looked at the direction of her new friends.

"Help me..." the bluenette pleaded before the veiled spirit snapped her fingers and restored him to his full condition.

"What happened?" the redheaded fairy asked the other redhead.

"Nothing much," Mitsuru shrugged calmly as she dragged the boy out of the Fountain of Life, a defeated look in his face.

"..." the Pixie gazed at the teens with her mouth agape, "such a fearsome girl."

_Meanwhile..._

_The remaining members of SEES had rallied around a suspicious structure. Understanding that the demons were capable of intelligible speech, Akihiko took command and roughed up a number of them to gather information. And that is how the group found themselves at the front door of the Assembly of Nihilo._

"So that's where they're keeping Yamagishi," the silverette said with a glint of determination in his eyes.

"This feels way too easy like in those movies where the kids go into a haunted house," the boy in the hat added with mystery.

"Junpei is correct, scanning pop culture references indicate a 75% probability of this being a trap," Aigis said mechanically, "we must take caution."

"Ai-chan's right, I found a bunch of items from some of the demons we beat from earlier," Junpei revealed a fresh stock of bandages.

"Good work Junpei, though by the looks of it, someone got ahead of us," Akihiko pointed at the structure, revealing the bodies of a few battered demons.

"Wait, these are spear wounds!" Iori yelled in suspicion.

"And there are slash marks among the others, the work of a small blade, most likely a knife," the blonde added.

"So Ken and Koromaru, huh?" the boxer put his gloves on, "what're we waiting for?"

"Let's go!" Junpei said in excitement.

_Inside the Assembly of Nihilo..._

_The floor was littered with the corpses of fallen demons, the group of teens silently prayed that they weren't too late. The other demons who stayed away from the fight had a new found fear of humans and fled on site of the SEES members. Eventually, the group found their companions fighting of a medieval assortment of knights on horseback. Koromaru was tanking their fire spells, but failed to protect Ken from the wider area attacks._

"Tch, is this the end for us Koro-chan?" Ken cursed at their fortune.

"Not yet it isn't, don't give up just yet!" Akihiko dashed passed the knights and helped his kouhai get back on his feet.

"Yeah Ken, did you bet the shit out of all those demons back there to just lay down and die!" Junpei yelled angrily as he raised his sword.

"Target sighted," Aigis drew her makeshift ax.

"It's five against two here, the advantage is ours!" the silverette encouraged the group.

"Is that so?" the demon in red armor questioned in a deep booming voice.

"Huh?" the boy in a hat was surprised at the remark.

_With a fierce motion, the knights quickly summoned reinforcements to even the odds._

"Whoa, no fair, that's cheating!" Junpei complained.

"It would be troubling if it were as easy as that, wouldn't it?" Aigis gave a small chuckle.

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Shinji would have torn through these guys like cardboard," Akihiko joined in at the mechanical maiden's laughter.

"You guys are nuts," the slacker complained, not realizing he was suppressing his laughter as well.

"Oh please, this is overkill, even without Minato here, we have more than enough fire power to deal with this," the youngest member joined in on the discussion.

"Ruff!" Koromaru barked in glee.

_The combined members of SEES sans four who are currently missing, marched against the enemy horde._

_It was a glorious battle..._

_At Mantra HQ..._

64th floor.

"Who the hell built this place?" a familiar brunette complained.

"Who knows? These punks are just overgrown meatheads," the demon hunter replied.

"At least I can defend myself now," the girl in pink showed of her dual pistols, "why do you have four of these anyway?"

"Those were my dad's, I loaned 'em from their new owner as a precaution," Dante answered as he showed the girl his own guns, "Ebony and Ivory, custom made by an old friend of mine."

"Bullets?" the girl searched in earnest for some sort of magazine in the guns.

"Powered by magic," the man in red explained as he fired a shot at an unsuspecting bird...which subsequently fell from the sky.

"Hey, the door's opening," Yukari pointed out.

"Slow down, we are way high up y'know," Dante attempted to scare the girl.

"Pffft," the brunette gave the man a raspberry as she jumped straight to the platform with the aid of her Garu spells.

"Tch, now everyone has magic powers," the demon hunter complained at the wind.

_End._


	6. Chapter 6

Fool's Reason

AN: I don't own SMT: Nocturne or Persona 3, Atlus does. Anyway I will update whenever possible, usually weekends.

_Spent the whole week writing this after a health scare concerning some cysts and tumors in my head, needed something to preoccupy me._

_This is gonna start a few sets of focus chapters, this one about MinaMitsu, not really much in shipping though.  
><em>

_End AN._

*Story Starts here*

_Time has ceased in the Vortex World..._

_Mitsuru Kirijo took it to herself to find some bearing in the Vortex World. The trio had found their way to some sort of shopping district, the redhead looked around some signs and confirmed that they were currently in Shibuya. The bluenette, on the other hand, was taking it all in stride, looking around for things the group could use, Mitsuru appreciated the effort he went through for the team._

"See anything we can use?" the redhead poked around.

"Found a new shirt, not really used to running around half-dressed," the bluenette answered honestly.

"Good clothes are so hard to find nowadays huh?" the Pixie joined in on their idle conversation.

"Got that right," Minato replied as he rummaged through the pile of men's apparel.

"I think there are some working shops down the stairs," Mitsuru said after listening in on demons' conversations.

"Yeah, but there are some real jerks who prey on unsuspecting travelers," the floating redhead gave a large 'hmph' at the end.

"Okay..." the leader spoke unsure of how he should react.

"They also have a Terminal, it might help you guys sort out whatever happened," the Pixie added.

"Terminal? Could it be related to that man who kidnapped Yamagishi?" the other redhead pondered.

"It's worth checking out then," Minato concluded.

_The unlikely trio descended the stairways and found themselves in many a battle. The leader wondered aloud if this could have happened back in Tatsumi Port Island. The heiress was pondering as to any reason in particular why shop owners in the Vortex World did not invest in security if they could. The Pixie was speaking of how close she was to mutating like it was a good thing. The group managed to convince a Shikigami and Hua Po to join them in their quest.  
><em>

"Oh look, a shop!" the floating redhead discovered.

"We won't have to fight anyone inside right?" the bluenette asked with a tired look on his face.

"Nope," the Pixie replied with a smile.

"Then why did we have to fight our way here?" the Kirijo heiress demanded as she wiped the sweat off her face.

"They are all potential customers y'know?" the floating redhead pointed out.

"That actually makes sense in a weird way," Minato facepalmed in agreement.

_Inside the shop..._

"Hee-ho, what can I get for you?" a familiar looking creature asked the three.

_The bluenette stood still for a brief moment, recalling that the pale clown-like creature before him, like Pixie, was one of his_ _Personae in the conflict against Nyx.  
><em>

"Hello? You okay, hee-ho?" the snowman asked the boy in concern.

"Hm? Yeah, um, do you have any bandages and stuff?" Minato wondered.

"Hee-ho, we do and..." the Jack Frost paused stared at the bluenette with as serious a look as his face could allow him, "so you're the Demi-Fiend?"

"What?" both Minato and Mitsuru answered in unison.

"Oh we've been in such a rush and all that I forgot to explain this," Pixie let loose a chuckle.

_The floating redhead along with occasional commentary from the shopkeeper_ _explained to the teens what the boy's role was in the Vortex World along with the nature of his powers, the Magatama and the weight of his choices._

"That's pretty serious," the boy admitted.

"Fate seems to have a way of spiraling us into messes like this," Mitsuru confided.

"Decide on a Reason huh?" the bluenette thought deeply.

"None have made themselves known so don't stress yourself," the redhead placed her hand over the boy's shoulder.

"Hee-Ho, right here are the bandages and chakra drops," the Jack Frost gave Minato a plastic bag with the goods, "and the Magatama."

"Thank you," the Kirijo heiress said in place of the boy as the trio exited the shop.

_The Pixie floated ahead of the pair and toured the area before returning to her companions._

"We should try heading to the Cathedral of Shadows first," the friendly demon suggested.

"Cathedral of Shadows, what happens there?" Mitsuru inquired.

"It's where demons are fused together to become stronger," Pixie answered.

"Sounds familiar to me," Minato muttered.

"Okay let's g-" their floating ally was cut off by an attack from the rear.

"What!" the redheaded teen drew her makeshift rapier.

_A large star shaped demon flew into their gaze before opening its eye in a furious rage._

"Who are you?" the Pixie flew behind her mostly human companions as she healed herself with the use of Dia.

"I heard from some of the demons back at the hospital that Forneus was attacked and defeated by the Demi-Fiend," the starfish creature replied.

"He wouldn't get out of our way," the bluenette shot back.

"In this world, might makes right, but my friend is gone thanks to you," the demon's voice seethed with anger, "I'm Decarabia the Fallen and I will avenge my friend!"

"Tch, I can sense his power," Mitsuru proclaimed, "he's out of our league!"

"Got that right!" Decarabia agreed with the girl as he summoned two monstrosities behind him.

"Legion!" the bluenette exclaimed.

"No..." Mitsuru focused the power of her analysis, "Chronzon, they're weak to Wind and Light attacks and strong against Physical ones!"

"Takeba and Ken aren't here right now," Minato replied, "just use Ice!"

"Understood," the redhead nodded in agreement, "Freeze, all of you!"

_A conglomerate of Ice crystals engulfed the trio's enemies and slaying the Chronzons, but leaving the Decarabia seemingly no worse for wear_.

"I don't need analyze to say that it resists Ice, crap," the boy cursed, "we've got no other magic users with us."

"Then we'll just have to pounce on him the old fashioned way," Pixie answered, revitalized and vengeful.

"Right," Mitsuru held her sword close, "strike now!"

_With a single command, the team of Minato, Mitsuru, Shikigami and Pixie struck at their foe with all the might they could muster._

"He isn't down yet?" the floating redhead said in distaste.

"Haha, try that again if you dare," Decarabia goaded the demoness.

"Oh we will," Pixie growled at the starfish.

"Wait," the bluenette tried to stop her, "it's a trap!"

"C'mon he might heal if we don't att-" the demoness was cut off when her strike connected with Decarabia's body, "-Gahh!"

_"Thankfully, Pixie is REALLY weak in terms of physical power,"_ _Minato thought to himself, "the damage shouldn't be that great."  
><em>

"That really stung," Pixie rubbed her now bruised cheek.

"A physical-based reflect spell," Mitsuru figured, "that just means he's open for more attacks now."

"Raah!" the bluenette let out a feral sounding battle cry as he lunged at their foe.

"Ugh," the starfish was sent reeling back.

"A critical hit!" the redhead commented, "Press on with an All-Out-Attack!"

_With Pixie having recovered from the reflected attack, the team surrounded the demon and began tearing him apart limb from limb and all that remained in their midst were the death throes of Decarabia._

"Whoa, it's finally happening" the floating redhead began as her body glowed.

"This light," Mitsuru looked shocked at her analysis.

"Too strong," the bluenette said before covering his eyes.

"What the-?" the redhead couldn't believe her most recent scan.

"The new and improved High Pixie is here!" a strange Fairy clad in a breastplate and blue hair appeared before the group.

"So she evolved?" Mitsuru grew tired of the surprises she was having recently, "This concept seems so familiar somehow."

"Yup, with more strength and newer skills!" High Pixie was eager to show off her new found power.

"Enough about me for now," their newly evolved ally said as humbly as she could, "we should head to the Cathedral of Shadows."

"Right," Minato agreed calmly, keeping his earphones in the pocket of his newly acquired jacket, "this really is a nice fit."

"I seem to be having a lot of questions lately," the only redhead in the party (as of now) mused, "I'm astounded that you aren't as shocked."

"Considering the whole of last year," the bluenette began, "questions seem to answer themselves given some time."

"Wise words," Mitsuru walked beside the boy as she chuckled at his reply.

"Here it is!" their floating Fairy friend said with the same enthusiasm she had prior to her evolution.

"Never thought I'd be going in this place," the Shikigami in the group broke his long silence.

"I agree, fusion is reserved for those of a higher station in this World," the Hua Po joined in the conversation with a sullen tone.

"Well, in this world, anything can happen," High Pixie spoke encouragingly.

_As the group entered the room, Minato could have sworn that the glow of a familiar blue shone in the form of a key. The boy eventually awakened to his suspicions as a bright light blinded the party._

_End._


	7. Announcement

Fool's Reason

AN: I don't own SMT: Nocturne or Persona 3, Atlus does. Anyway I will update whenever possible, usually weekends.

_I will not be uploading a chapter this week because my final exams are coming up so I'll post two focus chapters next week about Akihiko's Team and Dante._


	8. Chapter 8

Fool's Reason

AN: I don't own SMT: Nocturne or Persona 3, Atlus does. Anyway I will update whenever possible, usually weekends.

_The fighting was nothing short of intense, the members of SEES_ _found out the hard way that the demons of Shijima were more cunning than they were physically strong. The children's enemies were indeed a challenge with numbers alone, but they were an even greater threat with the traps they had set for any potential intruders that may choose to invade._

_Time does not flow in the Vortex World..._

"Dammit," the interim leader cursed, "we can't make sense of this passageway."

"I have confirmed the mechanisms here," Aigis began, "it is as Akihiko-senpai has said, this labyrinth is very complex."

"Oh no," Junpei despaired, "even Aigis can't make sense of this place."

_As the group groaned at the misfortune of their current circumstances, Ken began fiddling around the controls._

"Ken?" the silverette muttered before the floor moved around him.

"What the-?" the other male teen grabbed onto his hat in defense.

"This is as I have checked," the mechanical maiden stood firm, "the paths are closed to us until the right combination of switches is attained."

"Quit yer whining!" the young boy shouted, sending his compatriots into a state of shock.

"..." a dead silence overcame the senior members.

"While we're wasting time here, Yamagishi-senpai is being used by that creep!"

"*Ruff*" Koromaru growled in agreement with the boy.

"Ken..." Junpei muttered lightly.

"Do you know how hard it was for Koro-chan and myself!" the lad's voice echoed throughout the room.

"Tch," The silverette's face contorted.

"Of course not," Ken mused on, "no one does."

"I have activated all the switches in this room," Aigis broke the mood of the room, "we may now proceed."

"Yeah," Iori agreed with sorrow and regret in his tone, "look, Ken, if you need any help with stuff or someone to talk to, you got us okay?"

"..." the boy nodded silently.

"I'm sorry we couldn't be there for you two when you needed us," Akihiko stared at the boy and the dog.

"...It's fine," Ken answered.

_The next room possessed even more paths and blocks as well as ladders to throw the children off_. _In the eyes of the mechanical maiden, this was merely a question of time, but she could not deny that she was suppressing the humanity that "he"_ _had helped her develop over the past year for the sake of her friends. It was painful, but she knew that it was for the sake of the team._

"You okay Ai-chan?" the boy with the hat asked with worry.

"I am fine," the girl lied.

"Hey guys!" the team leader called for the group.

"We're coming senpai!" Junpei rushed.

"What's wrong Koro-chan?" Ken saw the dog standing in its attack stance.

"*Ruff*" Koromaru faced one of the adjacent blocks.

_Within the adjacent block was a starfish shaped creature with a human head, said creature spun around before addressing the members of SEES._

"Children of man," the demon began, "I am Kaiwan, and your barbaric intrusion has not gone unnoticed."

"You don't say?" Junpei answered smugly.

"Rude child," Kaiwan retorted, "Master Hikawa has sent me to halt your advance!"

"You and what army?" the boxer replied with confidence.

"No army is needed to deal with the likes of you," the starfish spun around once more.

"What's that supposed to mean!" Ken yelled out as he propped his spear.

"I sense a disturbance in the blocks," the mechanical maiden analyzed, "he's flipped a switch!"

_Before the others could react to the blonde's warning, the floor spun around __violently, throwing the children across the room and separating them._

"I take my leave," Kaiwan spoke cruelly.

"Damn," Akihiko punched the floor.

"Guys," Ken panicked, "Koro-chan isn't with me!"

"I sense him!" Aigis answered reflexively.

"But I don't see any switches around me!" the slacker shot back, "We can't get to him or out of here!"

"Wait," the blonde listened attentively at the dog's barks in the background.

"What is it?" the boxer gave a concerned look.

"He's found a switch," the mechanical maiden began to calm down.

"Then we can move around," Junpei started to develop a smile.

"Right," Ken agreed with his senpai.

_Koromaru understood what his compatriots were saying and quickly hit the switch to move the room once more..._

_*Rumble*_ _*Rumble*_ _*Rumble*_

_The all too familiar sound of the blocks shifting around returned to the ears of SEES, this time giving them the hope of continuing their journey. Sadly, no clear path could be discerned from the new arrangement of the blocks._

"Guys, I see a ladder down here," the slacker looked two blocks straight ahead of him.

"Anything you can sense Aigis?" the silverette motioned to the direction of the blonde's voice.

"The flow of this world's native energy is disrupting my sensors," the blonde replied with a negative tone.

"Junpei, can you look for another switch down there?" Akihiko made a request.

"No problem," the boy gave a confident look despite the lack of anyone to see it.

"Be careful senpai," Ken implored the slacker, "Koro-chan and I have been here longer than you guys, heck, we were caught in an illusion for around three days when we got here."

"Three days?" Junpei gulped loudly.

"Their traps are different from the kinds we're used to," the youngest member explained, "they mess with your head somehow, even Koro-chan got caught in it."

"This is not helping me y'know," the slacker scratched the back of his head with a pained expression.

"Do not fear," Aigis encouraged, "their stronger forces have already met their demise at our hands, you can handle any more that appear to face you down there."

"Thanks Ai-chan, you sure know how to cheer a guy up," a smile returned to Junpei's face.

_The young teen slowly descended the ladder with sword in hand, ready to continue his quest. An ominous feeling of danger swelled within him for he knew the danger of rushing in alone._

_ End Chapter._

__AM: This fic is going to be on hiatus for a while. I'll bring it back before June, hopefully.


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